The Devil and the Angel
by Netherwood
Summary: A friend at her side, a fool screaming for her downfall, a crusader wading into the battle. Over the years, Miki Sayaka has been many things to Homura. Perhaps it was always leading here, where the devil and an angel clasp hands and prepare to strike the other down.
1. The Princess and the Knight

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／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

 **I. The Princess and the Knight**

The Sunday afternoon crowd chattered happily in the mall's burger joint. Parents tried to appease their young children with the toy from the kids meal and wrangle teenagers who had better things to do with their day off, while at other tables considerably happier teens clumped together with their friends. The enlarged photos of food posted above the counter and along the entrances did their very best to tempt customers with healthy salads and yogurt smoothies, the proper foods for a bright cutting-edge city like Mitakihara, but most people sat down with a heap of fries and a double cheeseburger anyway.

In a booth at the very back of the dining area, a girl with red-rimmed glasses and her long black hair in two braids sat almost but not quite wringing her hands. She was sitting where she should have been able to see all the entrances and windows in the room, and she'd chosen the spot with that intent as well as a simple desire to stay out of the middle of the bustling crowd, but her gaze kept getting stuck on the table in front of her.

Homura was off-guard enough that she squeaked in surprise when another girl with neck-length blue hair and a tray of food bounced into the booth across from her and plopped down a tall oreo milkshake on the table with a grin. "Here, a tasty treat for our team mascot!" She pushed the milkshake toward Homura's side of the table with a hand that bore a silver ring and a blue crescent mark on the same finger's nail.

If anything, the gift startled Homura even more than Sayaka's sudden appearance, and she tried to push it back. "You didn't have to get me anything! I... I was waiting for Madoka to get here before I order."

"Oh, come on, Homs! With your heart, you shouldn't be sitting around in this weather without something to take the edge off the heat anyway. Where would the rest of us be if our source of moe keeled over?" Sayaka laughed and slid the milkshake around Homura's hands and back to her side of the table. "Besides, I just wanted to get something tasty for you. That's okay, isn't it?"

Homura wavered a moment longer, but eventually relented in the face of Sayaka's overpowering cheer and took the shake with a hand that bore a silver ring and a purple diamond on a fingernail. She looked a little embarrassed, but perked up when she took a sip and got the first taste. "...thank you, Sayaka. It's really a lot though. Um, would you like to have some of it?"

Sayaka waved off the offer and indicated her own corndog, fries, and root beer. "Sweet of you to offer, but I've got plenty to go on for now. Here, I got you an extra straw, though."

Homura picked up the straw, blinking in confusion, while Sayaka checked her phone. "Um, why do I need an extra straw?"

"Because her last text says Madoka should be here in five minutes, ten tops. Just eat slow until then, okay?" Sayaka snapped a quick picture as Homura blushed luminescent but before she managed to hide her face in her hands, then happily started on her corndog as she sent the pic to Madoka.

When she finally came out of hiding, Homura gave Sayaka a look that was still red-faced and a tiny bit watery-eyed. "...Sayaka? Why are you being so nice to me?"

"Whph?" Sayaka just blinked blankly, then chugged her drink to help her swallow. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Homura didn't meet Sayaka's eyes or answer the question. In most loops, Sayaka was always hostile, constantly berating her in combat and convinced everything out of her mouth was a malicious lie. The past few loops had gotten better, though. Homura's aim, trigger discipline, and precision with explosives was finally decent. She and Sayaka would probably never make a good combat team, but she no longer caused trouble for the swordswoman. That explained one half of the question. For the other...

Homura had given up on telling the other girls dangerous secrets. She'd given up trying to warn them about Kyubey's trickery, about the truth of the Soul Gem, about the final fate of puella magi. Why should she? Telling them never saved anyone. It never prepared them. It only made them wary of her. Now, she just needed to help everyone beat Walpurgisnacht without them having to find out those painful truths...

Homura's grip tightened on her milkshake and her free hand clenched. She lowered her head, suddenly afraid of letting Sayaka see how much she was trembling. Was that it? Was that all it took? Did Sayaka love playing the hero so much that all Homura had to do to win her trust was not say bad things about this hell they'd sacrificed themselves for? Even though she told them those secrets because she'd been trying to help, trying to save them all?

Sayaka reached out and caught Homura's free hand, covering it with her own and giving it a quick squeeze, seeming to misinterpret her frustration. "Hey, chin up. Puella magi are kinda like knights out of old fairy tales, you know? Riding around and fighting the evil monsters." She gave a little laugh, lilting and self-deprecating. "Well, that's what I thought of first time I saw Mami in action. I hope I can live up to it. You though, Homura, no one would think you're a knight."

She got a limp glare in return, and laughed.

"Hey, sorry Homs, I didn't mean it like that, promise! I mean, you're really more like a princess than a knight. It's just a girl with your personality isn't suited for fighting at all, and even though you can keep your heart going with magic, you still look frail enough to just shatter. But, here you are. You keep pushing yourself to help us fight witches, even though you're obviously scared of it all." Sayaka shrugged and gave Homura's hand another squeeze. "That's something I like about you. It's respectable, you know? You're getting stronger and tougher all the time, too! You're a princess now, but soon enough you'll be a princess and a knight."

Homura pulled her hand back and shook her head. "It's... it's not like that at all! I'm not strong, and I'm not brave. I'm only fighting witches here because there's..." she hesitated, and danced around the issue of Madoka, "...something I want very much, and it will be ruined if I don't protect this city. I'm here because I'm trapped, Sayaka. I'm doing this because I'm a selfish person."

"You knew you could use your one wish on anything when you made the contract, right?"

Her breath hitched, and her pulse started racing. Homura tried not to let it show, but she still stared down at the table anyway. Why was Sayaka asking about her wish? She'd been careful not to say anything about it! She hadn't breathed a word about it when she introduced herself to Madoka, Sayaka, and Mami this loop. They mustn't know. Her wish was one of the secrets that ruined everything. "Of… of course I did! But I used it for something I wanted for myself. It was a selfish wish."

Sayaka, unconcerned, just shrugged and kept working at her corn dog. When she finished, she jabbed the stick at Homura's chest with a flair and a look of triumph. "Your heart."

"Eh?"

"I bet most girls who spent half their life in a hospital room would want to be healthy again, wouldn't they? Give them one wish, and they wouldn't even hesitate! Sure, you can strengthen your heart with magic now, but you didn't know that before you made your choice, did you?"

"N...no, I didn't."

"See? Me and Madoka didn't have anything we needed so much we'd spend the rest of our lives fighting monsters to get it. You did, and you still used your wish on something else completely." Then Sayaka leaned forward over the table and whispered conspiratorially, "You wanted to protect someone, didn't you?"

With a squeak, Homura jerked backward to get away from the other girl. "How—how did you?"

Sayaka plopped back into her seat with a thwump and a satisfied smirk. "It wasn't that hard to figure out, seeing how desperate you are to protect the city. Calm down, Homu, I won't ask about it anymore. I bet you've got your reasons not to talk about it, but I'm happy enough just to know you're fighting for such a good cause. And don't you call yourself selfish or a coward again, okay? You're not."

"Maybe, but I'm..." Homura took a deep breath. The trembling wasn't going away, even though it was small enough to hide. She'd come here expecting to get fast food with her friends and go listen to music after, not have the layers of secrets protecting her heart get peeled away one by one, and certainly not by the ever-blunt Sayaka. "I'm still not strong enough."

"So what? You don't need to be." Sayaka reached out for Homura's hands again, but instead of a quick reassuring squeeze, she grasped them firmly in hers and pulled Homura's gaze up to her own. "It's not like you have to go it alone, Homura. No matter what, I'll be there to back you up. How can I become a knight myself if I leave someone as sincere as you all alone?"

She'd heard words like this from Sayaka before, but always to Madoka, Mami, or Kyouko. It was only natural for a crusader like Sayaka to talk like that. Homura tried to beat Walpurgisnacht so many times, with the others or alone, failing over and over, and no matter how many times she'd gone back, never once had Sayaka clasped her hands and told her she'd be there for her. Her vision blurred with sudden unshed tears.

"Sayaka?" For once, she didn't care how weak and pathetic she sounded right then. "Do you promise?"

The smile Sayaka gave her was as bright as the sunset kissing the ocean. "Of course I promise! On my honor as puella magi, I will not abandon you. I'll fight alongside you and prop you up until you're strong enough to be a knight yourself, and then I'll keep helping you anyway. It's a promise."

Homura could feel the tears trying to break out, and wriggled one hand free to grab a napkin and wipe them up before she broke down in public. She wanted Sayaka to say those beautiful words again so she could hear them over and over.

That wasn't why she was nearly crying, though. She didn't try to correct Sayaka's misconception as the other girl kept up a stream of reassurances and gently tugged Homura's soggy napkin away to replace it with a proper handkerchief. It was far easier to let Sayaka think she was ready to cry because she was happy.

After all, how could she explain that she'd seen Sayaka break too many times? What good would a knight's blade do in the face of secrets that broke the spirit and turned faith to bitterness?

It was a beautiful promise, but it wasn't enough.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

"Traitor!"

A blade came up, catching the moonlight.

"Liar!"

A blade came down; Kyubey's upper half bounced in one direction, while his lower half fell the other way.

" _Abomination!_ "

The skyscraper's rooftop was already littered with the marshmallow waste, but Sayaka didn't show any sign of stopping.

 _'_ _Betrayer is inaccurate, since there was never a point where my own interests were not my first priority. I never claimed otherwise. Also, I have told you no untruths of any sort. As for abomination,'_

Sayaka whirled and jammed her blade through the newest Kyubey's head, lifting it twitching off the ground.

 _'all I can say is that I don't understand why you humans, despite being mostly sapient, insist on being constantly disgusted with the world around you. You're capable of logic and abstract thought; you should understand things in their own context instead of relying on your egocentric point of view._

A flick of her wrist, and the corpse impaled on her blade went flying; Kyubey hopped to the side to dodge it. Sayaka ripped her soul gem off her uniform and thrust it toward the Incubator. "You think I should accept this? I'm a rock! You made us into fucking zombies and shoved our souls into rocks and you didn't tell us!"

Beyond them, Mami's dead form lay slumped with the tiny fragile shards of a yellow gem scattered about her head. The witch had been weak, but incredibly fast and blended in perfectly with the Aurora Borealis-like glow that its labyrinth was made from; it had lashed out with long, waving appendages before they found it. Mami's dodge had been heartbeat-fast, but the strike still clipped the side of her head, drawing just enough blood to be inconvenient, and also shattering the one true weakness a puella magi could have.

Homura suppressed a sigh. For Sayaka, being conscious and hopped up on battle adrenaline was the worst way to discover the truth of the soul gem; it almost always ended with her in a berserk fury. The death spiral was much slower if the truth came to light when she was calm, and the more out of it she was the better. This, though... Kyubey needed to go before he made things even worse.

A magnum shot ricocheted off the ground next to Kyubey, cutting off his explanation. You didn't ask, why should it matter where your soul is, this is more convenient for fighting witches. She'd heard all the excuses so many times they'd become meaningless; they were just noises the Incubator made when it saw an angry girl. She drew a bead on Kyubey's head, and when she spoke again her voice was frozen. "We don't want you here any longer, Kyubey. Leave. We won't listen to you again."

"I want to hear it!" Sayaka snarled at him. "I want to hear his damn reasons. I want to hear them so I can shove them down his goddamn throat!"

Homura didn't try to stop Sayaka from dashing forward to split Kyubey down the middle again, but she did keep a hand on her shield. Furious as she was, Sayaka was likely to lash out at anyone who caught her attention right now.

Kyubey landed lightly on Homura's shoulder, tail swaying from side to side as crimson eyes peered into her own. _'_ _Puzzling. You don't seem surprised at all by this revelation, Akemi Homura. Did you somehow discover this information already?'_

She didn't think Sayaka's blade would care about collateral damage at the moment, so pulling a shotgun and removing the furry menace manually was simply a matter of Homura's personal safety. There was however a certain amount of satisfaction in seeing white bits spray over half the rooftop.

The Incubator didn't reappear, so Homura's full attention went back to the other puella magi on the roof. "Sayaka?" The ice in her gut thawed out and turned to a hot, sick worry. Sayaka's heavy breathing, the fury in her eyes, the quivering point of her blade. Sayaka's glowering eyes locked onto Homura; her blade-hand clenched the hilt. Futile words spun through Homura's mind as she tried to come up with something, anything that would calm Sayaka down. "Don't listen to him, Sayaka. He doesn't care about us, he'll manipulate puella magi anyway he can—"

"You knew."

There was nothing to say to that, so Homura grit her teeth and nodded.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"It was too late to stop you! You'd already contracted. What good would it do to tell you after you'd already walked into Kyubey's trap?"

"I don't know!" Sayaka exploded into motion, and her blade slashed wildly and aimlessly through the air. "I don't know! But now what? I can't face Kyousuke with this body! What good am I like this? I'm just another monster! I'm just a corpse that hasn't stopped yet! Mami believed in this work, and it was all a lie!"

She staggered as she swung, closer step by step until she was in range of Homura. Sayaka glared as though trying to judge the weight of her guilt. Homura felt herself stooping and pulling her arms in close to her body, trying to shrink and look as little like a threat as she could. Then, with a snarl, Sayaka twisted to the right and flung her sword from the skyscraper; it whistled as it spun off into the night.

Still half-turned away from Homura, Sayaka slumped as though exhausted from her spent anger. "At least Mami isn't living a lie anymore. She didn't deserve to know this." Sayaka stared blankly at her soul gem, still clutched in her left hand. It cast a sea-blue light on Sayaka's face, but Homura could see the viscous midnight dark bubbling up within it, far too rapidly. "That's right. Mami's at peace now, isn't she?"

A hand came up, the gem within it catching the moonlight. "The world doesn't need mistakes like us." A hand came down, and the aqua gem flew towards the ground—

—the world froze into gray as Homura yanked her shield. She dashed over and knelt in front of Sayaka, hands out in supplication.

The world snapped back into color, and Sayaka's soul gem landed in Homura's hands. She fumbled for a grief seed to cleanse it, then clasped Sayaka's soul protectively against her body as soon as its light was clear blue again.

Sayaka's mouth twisted into a snarl, eyes cold. "Give it back, transfer student."

"No. Not if you're going to break your soul."

"Give it back, or smash it. You can't make me live like this!"

"You promised!" The words tore out of Homura's throat with a heat that surprised even her. She'd told herself. She'd told herself not to get her hopes up, not to expect Sayaka to be there. No matter how friendly the girl was acting, no matter how sincere she seemed, no matter how badly Homura wanted her friends to be with her on this impossible task. "Are you just going to leave me alone again? I need you!"

"Yeah, I promised. Why does that even matter? That was before I knew what he did to us! You think monsters like us can do any good?"

"I! Already! Knew!" Homura shouted so loud her throat burned. "I knew what we were, and it didn't matter! I still wanted to try! I knew what you were when you promised to help, and I was happy anyway! I know we're not human, but I still have someone I need to help! Are you going to make a princess do this on her own?"

Sayaka stood there, fists trembling and eyes flashing between emotions too fast to follow, watching Homura gasping for breath in front of her,. Finally, she sank down to her knees and wrapped her arms around Homura. "You're right, aren't you, Homs? So what if it's too late for us? We can still be useful. Some knight I am, giving up that easily."

Homura stopped holding back and let herself burst into tears, burying her face in Sayaka's neck and clinging back as hard as she could, blue soul gem still tucked safely in her hands.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

There was no chance of hiding how broken up Sayaka was from her mother, so they had an impromptu sleepover at Homura's apartment to recover. The next day, Sayaka listened to Homura's explanations and agreed that it was probably smarter not to tell Madoka that puella magi were rocks. She insisted on telling Madoka anyway. It wasn't right, she said. Homura relented, partially because she didn't have the heart to deny Sayaka and partially because she knew Madoka always took it better than Sayaka anyway. As long as there was helpful work to be done, Madoka never much cared what happened to herself.

Homura also told the other girls about Walpurgisnacht. Madoka was shocked and worried and stumbled over herself to promise to help. Sayaka listened with a hard-eyed stoicism completely unlike her, then simply nodded when Madoka pressed her to promise as well. Homura wished she could bring Kyouko in too, but she'd turned hostile to Mami's cadre of new recruits early this loop, and talking was probably impossible now that they'd gotten Kyouko's estranged friend killed.

Sayaka all but cut herself off from Hitomi, Kyousuke, and other normal humans. She still made time for Madoka, but wasn't much for hanging out at the mall or giggling over gossip, and she shouted Madoka to tears the one time her childhood best friend tried to cheer her up by dragging her to the music store.

On the other hand, Sayaka became almost fanatically devoted to Homura. She was sure to meet her on the way to school every day and stayed as close as a bodyguard whenever possible until they parted at night. Grief corruption slowly but continuously seeped into her gem, but that was more than offset by their new manic hunting pace. Sayaka fought with relentless zeal, and their grief seed stockpile swelled. That suited Homura's purposes, but she was worried how grim and listless Sayaka was whenever they weren't hunting. Everyone in class noticed it, but Sayaka deflected their concern with anger and bitterness that she didn't bother to hide. Madoka and Homura were the only ones she was civil to, and she told them that she didn't deserve or care about a normal life anymore. All that mattered was helping Homura fight Walpurgisnacht.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

Broken skyscrapers lied scattered where they'd been thoughtlessly dropped. The forces that flung them about so heedlessly hadn't even noticed lesser debris like cars or small houses; the survivors would find those at the bottom of the bay for years to come. The wind had died, and the torrent of rain had slackened into a drizzle that did nothing to cleanse the ruined city. Against a broken stone, a pink-haired girl in a school uniform rested like a discarded doll. Streams of blood turned pink as they mingled with the rainwater around her.

Another failure.

When Homura finally ran out of powerless tears, she tried to make Madoka as comfortable as possible. Lying flat on an unbroken patch of soft grass, arms crossed over her chest. Body straight and smooth instead of the tangled, twisted heap she'd fallen in. Last of all, Homura closed Madoka's eyes and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

The silhouette of Walpurgisnacht sat on the skyline, slowly receding, dress torn and tattered and clockwork gears grinding out of joint. Homura wasn't certain, but it almost seemed Walpurgisnacht was getting stronger every time. She, Sayaka, and Madoka had driven her off, shut up her mind-grating laughter. They hadn't managed to kill her this time; the Witch of Witches would live to destroy again. Not that Homura cared; most of the people who mattered were already dead. The one who mattered most was dead. Her hand closed over her shield, preparing to jump again.

"—omu...ra—"

She spun around looking for the voice, and found Sayaka pinned, her head and upper body poking out from under a pile of rubble. Homura dashed over and started pulling concrete chunks and twisted metal away, babbling reassurances to the trapped girl. She'd seen Sayaka almost engulfed by Walpurgisnacht's stream of fire halfway through the fight and thought her dead. But why hadn't she called for help if she survived? Or why hadn't she dug her way out already? A puella magi was more than strong enough—

Homura flung away the last chunk of concrete pinning Sayaka, and nearly vomited. She actually hadn't been pinned, or at least not by much. A faint blue glow and the impression of a melancholy song hung around her wounds as Sayaka's magic tried to heal her, but most of her body below her breastbone simply wasn't there anymore. What was left of her magical uniform was scorched; Sayaka's own skin had the pink of newly healed flesh.

"...omura... sorr..." Sayaka winced at her inability to speak, and switched to telepathy. _'_ _Sorry, Homura. I tried to keep my promise, but I wasn't much use after all.'_

"Don't say that! You're alive, that's good enough for me. I'm going to..." Homura looked again at the space where Sayaka simply _wasn't_. "I'm going to pull you away from the rocks so you have room to regenerate your body. Get ready."

 _'_ _Don't bother. I'm not walking away from this one, Homs.'_

"You're a healer, you can survive this much! Now get ready."

Sayaka stared at her for a moment, then slowly raised her arms. _'_ _There's nothing to get ready for. It doesn't hurt at all unless we let it, remember? You can just drag me.'_

Ignoring that, Homura hitched her arms under Sayaka's armpits and cradled her head with her hands. She waited for Sayaka's hands to hook behind her neck, then pulled the other girl clear as gently as she could. Homura did a mental check, then double checked her shield to be sure. She had two grief seeds left. Not nearly enough to regenerate this much damage normally, but with Sayaka's healing magic, she might even still have a whole seed left over.

"Why didn't you call for help? You could have put yourself back together inside my time stop..."

 _'_ _My sword wasn't any good against the floating creep anyway. Once her familiars were gone, the only thing I could do was use up your seeds.'_

"Why does it matter what use you are or aren't? Why do you always give up on yourself?" Homura pushed down against the way her breath tried to hitch for another round of crying. She could argue with Sayaka later. But, there wouldn't be a later. She had to go back and try again... "No. Forget it for now. I'll just... keep you cleansed while you heal."

Then she realized what she should have remembered right away. Sayaka was missing everything below her ribcage. Her soul gem was normally right over her navel. "Sayaka... your gem..."

 _'_ _Grabbed it when I knew I wasn't getting clear. Isn't that stupid? Didn't Kyubey do this to us so we could fight better? I'm still alive as long as my gem doesn't break, but lying here is all I can do.'_ Sayaka raised her hand to the side of her neck, where her soul gem was pinned underneath the collar of her cape. _'_ _Isn't it stupid as hell?'_

Homura immediately fumbled for a grief seed. The cerulean light of Sayaka's soul was almost completely choked out with black corruption. And as she tried to shove her seed against the gem, Sayaka's hands shot out and clamped around Homura's wrists.

 _'_ _I told you, don't bother. We fucked up, Homura. We failed. What's the point?'_

Homura struggled, but Sayaka's grip was iron. Her balance was off from leaning over Sayaka. Even though Sayaka's ruined body was barely alive, the curse of puella magi meant her arms and hands were as strong as if her body had been whole and perfect. "Sayaka! Let go! You'll feel better when your gem is clean, please, let me help!"

 _'_ _The city's gone. The person you wanted to protect is dead in there for sure. Mami and Madoka, too. What else can I do? Let me die here.'_

"You don't understand, we don't just _die_ when our gems darken, it's worse, it's _so much worse!_ Please, _let go so I can stop it!_ "

 _'_ _We deserve it. Whatever it is, we probably deserve it. It doesn't matter what happens to us.'_

 _'_ _And, I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise, Homura. I'm so, so sorry.'_

A crack across her gem, a crack in Sayaka's stoic smile. Homura couldn't tell if the other girl felt pain as the transformation began, but the sorrow and regret were plain in her eyes. The iron grip on Homura's wrists finally went slack. Force and wind burst from the gem as it shattered, lifting Homura and flinging her. It was weaker than the gales of Walpurgisnacht, but struck Homura all the harder for how close she was to Sayaka.

Against her will, Homura listened. A symphony played the elegy of a girl who wished to be a knight, but had nothing left to protect.

For the desires of her heart and the deeds of her blade, she might have been exalted with empyrean glory had heaven's gaze witnessed her labors, but the light that burst around her now as the labyrinth formed was of the darkest blue and black of the drowned depths of the ocean.

Sayaka's empty shell and Homura both sank through the water and touched down on the floor of a resplendent concert hall, the corpse bouncing heedlessly and the girl falling into a ready crouch. A thousand players with instruments filled the distant seats circling the hall, their music soaring to the cavernous reaches as it spoke of heroism, of love, of loss. Their mistress, the armored mermaid that was Sayaka's witch, floated and listened. Shorn of purpose and her blade drifting idle, the leviathan listened with fascination and recalled glimmers of a life of dedication.

And in the center of the floor, spinning with elegance and perfect timing, a pair of figures danced together. A flowing purple dress with amethysts sewn into the fabric draped the shorter of the two, and her long black hair was caught up and adorned by a silver circlet at her forehead. The taller was arrayed in gleaming armor softened by sashes of white, and her sea-blue mantle twirled as the two continually stepped together and apart, chasing a dream of a kinder world.

Homura's body was already past its limit; every further moment of battle would come only by willpower and precious magic. Her mind was already strained by yet another failure to save… anyone. Her supply of grief seeds was dangerously low. It was smartest to write this tragedy off as a doomed timeline and jump to the next world. It was smartest to leave Sayaka's witch to its endless symphony.

Homura grit her teeth, stopped time with a twist of her shield, and reached for a grenade launcher. She owed her friend a clean death.

After all, Sayaka had kept her promise.

／人◕‿‿◕人＼


	2. The Hanged Girl and the Fool

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／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

 **II. The Hanged Girl and the Fool**

After the fight, the plaza was nearly empty and lit only by the nighttime park lights and the light sculptures that sent laser-tight beams dancing in imitation of water spouts. Homura's footsteps echoed louder than they ought as she walked away from the only other living person present. Her hair, no longer in braids, fanned out behind her. She couldn't help but reflect a little. After going through the same steps with the same people over and over, it was impossible not notice the trends—almost laws, really—that ruled this little band of girls she had spent so many years with.

For example, Tomoe Mami and Sakura Kyouko meeting early in the loop after their long estrangement could be a godsend or a catastrophe, and was always volatile. If they managed to reunite on friendly terms, everybody was almost guaranteed to be alive and together when Walpurgisnacht arrived. On the other hand, seeing Mami training a new generation of bright-eyed idiots enraged Kyouko, making reconciliation nearly impossible. And Kyouko, if angry enough, knew exactly what to say to destroy Mami's spirit. Only friends once knit together at the heart could manage that sort of deathblow. And then, the inevitable result...

As she walked, Homura's fingers curled around a grief seed with the symbol of a five-petaled flower.

"Hey, transfer student! Get back here, damn it! What the hell just happened? Where are Mami and the red-haired lunatic?"

And take, as another example, Sakura Kyouko and Miki Sayaka. Though her foundation was fragile, Sayaka's skin was thick, and unlike Mami, Sayaka responded to abuse and vitriol by gritting her teeth and rushing in at full strength—exactly the right way to earn the first measure of Kyouko's respect. Allow the two of them to snarl at each other like alley dogs for awhile, and they became closer and stronger. So long as they both survived, at least, rather than dragging each other down and dying stupidly.

This was also a path, however rare, for Kyouko and Mami to reconcile. When Kyouko arrived early and Sayaka managed to be enough of a nuisance that Kyouko focused her ire on the new acquaintance rather than the old friend... But of course, that required Sayaka to contract early and show some damn _initiative_ —

—a hand clamped around Homura's shoulder and yanked her around.

And, as a final example, Miki Sayaka and Akemi Homura.

Sayaka was somewhat past scowling and on her way to furious; Homura twisted her arm around Sayaka's and _bent_ , breaking the other girl's hold and throwing her to the ground. Fending her off was simple, and would have been even without the vast difference in their combat experience. After all, right now Sayaka was just of an ordinary mortal.

Sayaka stumbled back to her feet, too kicked up on adrenaline to react to the pain. Her face was twisted with hate, and Homura could see the other girl barely holding herself back from lashing out, probably aware she stood no chance against Homura. "Didn't you fucking hear me, transfer student? I said, _where the hell did they go?_ And where did that witch come from all of a sudden?"

Unlike Mami and Kyouko or Kyouko and Sayaka, the line of events that made Sayaka and Homura into friends was simple and required no desperate roll of the dice that spiraled into violence more often than not. All she had to do was put her hair up in braids and keep her mouth shut about the truth of Kyubey, Soul Gems, and witches. And, of course, simper. All she had to do was look small and lost and scared but determined, and Sayaka would be her devoted ally.

Homura couldn't remember how to make that face anymore.

A growl hung in Sayaka's throat as Homura stared at her, contemplating. Just as Sayaka opened her mouth to start swearing again, Homura cut her off and answered. "Puella magi who die fighting a witch disappear unless someone undertakes the meaningless task of retrieving their bodies before the labyrinth vanishes. Sakura Kyouko fell fighting the witch." Kyouko had gotten sloppy, refusing to kill or retreat. The familiars of Mami's witch always resembled her friends; Kyouko realized the truth when she saw the one garbed in red and wielding a spear.

 _I wonder, would my familiars look like these girls with whom I share this purgatory? Homura, the witch of an endless nature. She has become a four-spoked wheel that rotates without moving. Her four familiars are bound to the rim of the wheel, forever spinning about her without drawing closer._

Homura shoved the thought away with all the violence of self-preservation. "As for Tomoe Mami, Sakura Kyouko's words cut at her heart and, despairing, she transformed into the witch that slew 'the red haired lunatic'."

"What?" Sayaka's face went through shock, then horror, then fury. "That can't be... no, you're lying! What happened to Mami? Tell me, transfer student, or I'll beat the hell out of you, I don't even care if you're stronger than me!"

"Turning into a witch is the final destiny of puella magi." Homura pushed on, hard dispassionate eyes boring into Sayaka's. "Use too much magic without a grief seed or surrender to despair, and the curse in the hearts of puella magi devours the hope of their wish and turns them into the very monsters they fi—" Homura sidestepped Sayaka's wild punch. A shove into her unguarded side sent Sayaka off balance and crashing to the ground. Sayaka tried to surge to her feet again, but Homura stomped on her upper arm and shoulder, pinning her down.

Sayaka kept struggling. Her free hand beat at Homura's knees as she shouted. "Liar! Bitch! You killed Mami, didn't you! You're working with that other girl! You just want her territory! She's dead because of you!"

Homura kept her foot in place and endured the flailing tirade. It wasn't long before Sayaka's invective gave way to incoherent wailing. After another moment, she went limp and did nothing but sob. Only then did Homura lift her foot and take several steps back. "Believe me or not as you will, Miki Sayaka. I will still protect this city from witches. You and Madoka should forget about Kyubey and go back to your ordinary lives."

"I'll stop you." She couldn't stop sobbing, but Sayaka forced the words through her tears anyway. "I'll make a... a wish and I'll... I'll protect this city from witches _and_ from you! Watch me!"

"I see. Then I've failed you this time too. Do as you will, but bring no harm to Madoka, and be prepared to die if you try to kill me." Homura cranked her shield and walked away into the colorless and still world. Kyubey would likely come by to make Sayaka's contract as soon as Homura and her guns were out of range; better to use her time stop to avoid being tracked for now. Otherwise Sayaka would force the issue, and Homura would need to put her down immediately.

Throughout the fight and as she walked away, Homura's face was composed and hard, the face that Sayaka always hated. This was the only honest face Homura had now. She still remembered how to do polite, distantly friendly, and a few others she could use to keep the world at bay. But the faces that Sayaka loved to see—earnest, wounded, determined, whimpering—

Braids, trigger discipline, no sanity-shattering secrets. Long ago when they'd been friends, it took Homura a few loops to realize that Sayaka thought she was _adorable_ , cute like a helpless little puppy that fumbled about and needed to be taken care of. She got used to having Sayaka around, got used to milkshakes and sleepovers and classical music. When the endless battle was just too much to carry on her own, she got used to allowing herself to break down and cry wrapped up in Sayaka's hugs. She wasn't as deft and gentle as Mami, but like Mami she'd pull you in out of the rain and get you something warm to drink. She wasn't as shrewd as Kyouko, but like Kyouko she'd pick a fight with anyone that hurt her friends.

Homura no longer felt the things she needed to make the face that Sayaka wanted to see. It would be convenient if she could fake it—just put her hair in braids and attach a fragile smile to her face and let a few tears well up in her eyes. She tried one loop; the act was obvious to everyone.

And yet, it was for the best that Homura _couldn't_ fake it. After all...

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

…it always ends up here.

The wreck of a warrior knelt bonelessly in front of Homura, the trembling of her slumped shoulders visible through her cape. Blue hair fell over her lowered face, hiding her eyes.

Homura looked at the seed she'd already thrown to Sayaka, which the other girl had only tossed away. She grabbed handfuls of her skirt to keep her hands from clenching into fists. "Do you still not believe what I said about the birth of witches, Miki Sayaka?"

"...I believe you."

"Then why?" Her voice was getting heated; Sayaka's endless obstinacy wore at her composure better than almost anything else. "Even knowing that, you still won't clean your gem? Do you hate me that much, or are you simply an imbecile?"

"I do. I hate you, Akemi."

"So much that you'll let yourself turn into a witch rather than accept my help? Is your spite really that poisonous?"

"I hate you, Akemi. I hate you, and I hate Kyubey for tricking us. Mami died, and the red-haired girl killed her, and I hate both of them for it. Hitomi took Kyousuke, and Kyousuke never loved me to begin with. I hate them. Madoka..."

"Don't say a word against Madoka, Miki." A hard menace crept into Homura's voice. "She's better than you."

Sayaka laughed, mouth peeling back into a sick smile. "I know that. She's too good to become a monster like you and me. I called her a fucking coward, but I know she's still better than me. That's my only regret. I shouldn't have hurt Madoka." Her head lifted and her gaze drifted up to Homura's, a dark hopelessness meeting hardened ice. "This world isn't worth saving, Akemi. It's only full of things to hate."

There was no point in opening her heart to a girl who broke so easily. They all broke sooner or later, over and over; Sayaka was just the most brittle, even weaker than Mami. She was dangerous to Homura. Worse, to Madoka.

What would Sayaka say about that? Not the wreck of a girl that knelt before her; her friend from long ago, the one who believed in slaying monsters by night and walking happy and righteous in the noonday sun. What would she say?

"Give up on the world then, Miki." Homura pulled a second fresh grief seed from her shield; it clinked across the ground and came to a stop at Sayaka's feet, balancing delicately on its needlepoint. "Forget it entirely and save your own life instead."

"Why? Why should I bother when all that's left is to live as a useless monster? Why not become a witch and curse the world?"

Slowly, deliberately, Homura drew a desert eagle from her shield. Sayaka traced the motion with her eyes, but gave no other reaction. The apathy was disgusting, but also about what Homura expected. "I won't let Madoka go through the pain of seeing you tear yourself apart, Miki Sayaka. Take the seed."

Sayaka brushed it away, sparing only enough force to knock it barely out of arms' length.

What indeed would her Sayaka say?

 _You can't keep doing this to yourself, Homura. You need us. You can't put everything on your shoulders alone._

 _It's the only thing I can do._

 _Don't you remember what it was like to sit around Mami's table with all of us laughing and scarfing down a whole cake? Don't you remember crying on a friend's shoulder when it hurt too much? Don't you wish could have that again?_

 _But it never helps, Sayaka!_

 _You're hurting yourself by pushing us away._

 _Because I don't have to mourn for enemies. I'm tired of burying friends._

Sayaka covered her soul gem with a limp hand as if to protect it when Homura knelt in front of her, but didn't resist as Homura grabbed her hand and pried it open, gem tucked inside. Homura even thought she felt Sayaka lifting her arm herself, as if to help give a clear shot.

Homura pressed the muzzle to the black gem and hardened her heart.

 _It always ends this way._

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

Until.

A wish mightier than any other, a wish born from the heart of a girl who would not let hope be swallowed by despair. The heavens were empty and blind no longer; a goddess looked upon her sisters' struggles and eternally reached out to grasp their hands.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

Homura strode onto the school rooftop, blinking against the sudden light. The weather had been clear and warm lately; the sky above was bright azure with only a scattering of wispy clouds. A bento lunch wrapped in a purple bag printed with white lilies dangled from her hand. Waiting at the edge of the roof, Sayaka leaned with one hand twined into the ornate fence and feet shuffling nervously. She started at the sound of Homura walking across the stone tile, and greeted the newcomer with a tentative smile and the wave of an unadorned hand.

"Hey, Homu-ah, Akemi. You came!"

"Homura is fine, if you prefer it. You asked me to come. You have something to talk about?"

"Right, right. Oh!" Sayaka hoisted her own blue-wrapped lunch. "Maybe we could eat first?"

Homura nodded. "If you like."

They sat a few feet apart on a bench, eating in silence. Sayaka kept fidgeting nervously and staring out over the city, but Homura decided to let the other girl gather her thoughts and begin on her own time. A soft, cool breeze swept over the rooftop as they ate, bringing with it the distant, muted bustle of traffic in the city and the tangy salt from the bay. Homura knew, somewhere in the back of her head, that Madoka's wish didn't have anything to do with city sounds or the taste of the air, but she kept finding herself wondering at the little details of this new world anyway. Before, there'd always been plans to make, ordnance to steal, witches to hunt. No time to even think about the scenery. Time enough for that after, though she couldn't picture herself sitting in a park with a picnic basket. Madoka probably would have dragged her along somehow.

But even if she wasn't here, this was the world Madoka had made. Protecting it in her name would be enough. It would have to be enough.

Halfway through her lunch, Sayaka finally put her chopsticks aside and sat up a little straighter. "Hey, Homura."

"Yes?"

"I still don't even know where to start. It doesn't seem real, you know?" She pointed at Homura's ring, not quite looking straight at it. "I mean, just last week I was wandering around feeling sorry for myself, thinking the worst thing I had to worry about was whether Kyousuke's physical therapy had him in a bad mood or not. Then these giant toga monsters jump me out of nowhere. I mean, come on, there's got to be a limit to reality going crazy, right? Eh, what'd you call the toga monsters again?"

"Wraiths, monsters born of the negative emotions of the human heart."

"Yeah, those. If you and Mami and the red-haired lunatic hadn't shown up and kicked ass when you did, I'd be dead. I'd be dead, and my mom wouldn't even have any idea why or how. There wouldn't even be a body for her to bury. So, you know…" Sayaka shot her a restless smile. "Thanks again."

"Unnecessary, though you are welcome. We chose this life for our own reasons and had no expectation of gratitude or rewards."

Sayaka's head shot up at that to look at Homura. "That's wrong, though. Even if it's the way it is, it isn't the way it should be. You're saving lives all the time fighting monsters only you can fight, and no one else even knows you're doing it."

Homura just shrugged. "It's acceptable. We each had our own reasons for becoming puella magi, as I said."

"Yeah, well… look, I've been thinking about it, okay? About… you know. Making the contract."

She'd expected this as soon as Sayaka asked to meet her at lunch, of course. Even though Madoka had changed what it meant to be puella magi, Sayaka was still Sayaka. But this time there were no witches, Kyubey had no incentive to destroy their lives, there was no Walpurgisnacht waiting at the end of the road, no Gretchen looming beyond that. Now there were worse things than getting a wish and becoming puella magi. She knew; she'd lived through those worse things. Maybe…

No. That was foolish. It was still a life of endless battle. Was she actually looking forward to having Sayaka join their ranks? To have a little more company in hell? It probably wouldn't be disagreeable; Sayaka had no ire for her in this new world. Homura wasn't an interloper threatening her friends and clashing against her golden hero Mami this time, after all. Even so, that wasn't a reason to actually look forward to Sayaka condemning herself.

But still—Mami to one side of her with muskets booming out a beat to Homura's faster machine gun melody, Kyouko and Sayaka in front of them carving a path with spear and sword. What could be more familiar and reassuring than that in this world where she suddenly didn't have a plan or a purpose other than to keep going because it's what _she_ would have wanted?

If only the fifth person in that image wasn't _missing!_

Homura took a deep breath with her eyes closed, trying to calm herself before she replied. "Most girls would say they were thinking about making a wish instead of making the contract. After all, the wish is our sole compensation."

"Well maybe they're doing it wrong, then! Or… damn, I don't know."

"I'm sure Kyouko will object to you throwing away a comfortable life due to something as nebulous as a sense of indignation at the way the world works."

"What, the red-haired jackass? Well she can go stuff it! Wait, I won't have to work with her too, will I?"

Homura really couldn't help from laughing gently at the horror writ on Sayaka's face. "I expect she'll grow on you. In fact, I have a very good feeling she will."

"…you're making fun of me, aren't you?"

"Not at all, Miki Sayaka. I simply believe that you were made to become friends with loudmouthed abrasive hooligans."

Sayaka's face scrunched up. "I'm learning all sorts of stuff about you, transfer student. I thought you were just this weird gloomy goth kid when you first showed up, and then I found out you're a magical warrior fighting for love and justice by night. Even weirder, now I find out you've got a sense of humor! Who'da thunk it?" She snorted in amusement herself, before growing solemn again. "Hey, Homura. Is it okay if I ask what you wished for?"

Unthinkable, to toss out secrets like that so easily just because Sayaka was curious. Secrets killed, and honesty betrayed. Except there were no deadly secrets anymore, and Madoka would have liked to see Homura and Sayaka getting along. "I wished… to protect someone dear to me. I failed in the end, and she protected me instead. Now all I can do is honor her sacrifice."

"Is that why you're so sad all the time? Oh! I mean, eh, shit, that was kind of a horrible thing to say, wasn't it? Sorry!"

Homura rolled the idea around in her head for a bit, seeing if it stuck. Was she sad all the time, as Sayaka put it? Possibly. But perhaps hope for the world and a tinge of melancholy weren't entirely at odds. "Maybe it was impolite, but I suppose it's true enough. I think you're asking because you're considering your own wish, though?"

"Yeah. Sorry if it came out so…" Sayaka waved her hand vaguely. "…thatish. That's actually why I wanted to talk to you instead of Mami about this. Apart from, you know, you're in my class. You're here, you're still going, you're fighting alongside Mami, even though you look like it cost you something big. I guess I wanted to know what keeps you going."

"Mami has her own sorrows as well. We all do. But, if you can learn from my experiences, so much the better. In this case, you should learn that wishes rarely turn out as we expect." Homura sighed, then took a deep breath, set her lunch aside, and turned to face Sayaka directly.

"No, I should take your example on this and stop being so indirect. Sayaka. You seem to me like a girl with too many preconceptions, and if you choose to make a wish, you should carefully think about your own heart before you do so. I said that the wish was the only reward we can expect, and I meant it. We are not glorious heroes; people do not love us in return for our service. If you intend to contract to help people, you should be sure you are doing so because you want to help them, and not because you want praise or rewards for helping them. You should settle unfinished matters before you make a decision like this rather than pinning your hopes on becoming a hero."

"You don't pull punches, do you?" Sayaka laughed, but it was strained, and she looked away from Homura and kicked her legs like this was just an idle chat. "Hey, did I tell you my friend Kyousuke used to play violin before his accident? He was amazing, a real life prodigy. Met him way back at the start of elementary school, barely noticed him because he was so quiet and didn't like to go on the playground during breaks. Then we had the school talent show and he gets up on stage with this violin and tells everyone he's going to play his favorite song, 'Ave Maria'." The tension drained from her as she spoke, and she leaned back with her elbows on the bench and looked up to the sky. "That was the first time I'd seen anyone play a violin in person. I had no idea it was rare for first graders to play like that. I didn't know he belonged in concert halls instead of a scuffed-up elementary school auditorium. All I knew was I wanted to hear it over and over. So I'm thinking I could use my wish to fix his hand."

"You'd commit yourself to a life of endless battle for the sake of his music?" Homura knew Sayaka wasn't the sharpest, but this… "You really haven't been listening to me, have you?"

"I have! Really!" Sayaka leaned toward Homura and fixed her with a glare. "I'm not going to contract just to fix Kyousuke's hand. That's just because there's nothing I need to wish for myself, and I really hate that he can't play. It's just… what you said about expecting to be treated like a hero for becoming puella magi? About expecting everything to work out and being loved and honored? It's stupid. It's stupid and it's a horrible reason to do this, and anyone who does the right thing because they want rewards deserves the shit they're going to get, and when you said that isn't how it works I totally caught myself thinking 'but it should, in a perfect world that's how it should work'. I can see myself expecting everything to be a fairytale where it all works out and the heroes are showered with glory on their victorious return. I can see myself getting pissed if it doesn't turn out like that." Sayaka shook her head and shrugged. "Pretty pathetic of me, isn't it?"

"Human of you, perhaps. It's commendable that you realized it before it got you in trouble. Will you not make the contract, then?"

"It's a bad habit to watch out for, Homura, not a reason to be a coward. There are monsters out there and you three risk your lives every night to fight them. I couldn't live with myself if I just looked aside and walked away from that. So, here's what I'm going to do. Today, when I go visit Kyousuke after school, I'm going to tell him I'm in love with him. If he loves me back, then hey, I get a boyfriend I can mess around with when I'm not off killing wraiths! If he doesn't, then…" She shrugged. "Then I'll know he doesn't. Whether he returns my feelings or not, after I confess to him I'll wish to fix his hand. This way, the only thing I can expect from my wish is hearing him play again, because the other thing I'm hoping for will be settled one way or the other."

In Madoka's new world, Sayaka is still Sayaka… maybe. "You're not going to be talked out of this, are you?" Had Sayaka ever been this clearheaded?

"Nope!" Sayaka grinned and flashed a victory symbol. "I'm stubborn and tireless, and don't you forget it! Really though, whatever happens, I think I'll be satisfied even if all I can do is take some of that weight off your shoulders. I'll be your new trainee starting tonight, so let's be kickass together!"

Homura smiled minutely back at Sayaka and nodded. "Indeed."

Was it _okay_ for her to look forward, just a little bit, to this? If there was a way to talk Sayaka out of contracting, she had no idea what it was. Was it alright for Homura to have comrades?

They finished their lunches with light conversation of little importance—their teacher's very public love life, the CD Sayaka was bringing Kyousuke today, what Sayaka's magical uniform would look like. It was mostly just Sayaka bouncing endlessly from topic to topic, with Homura dropping in a few occasional words. That was probably alright. She doubted she should look forward to Sayaka making a contract, but having a friend was probably alright.

That evening, Sayaka came to Homura's apartment after talking to Kyousuke, in exactly as terrible a state as she expected. Homura wasn't used to this anymore and wasn't sure where to put her arms, but she hugged Sayaka and rubbed her back as the heartbroken girl cried. After that, Sayaka made her wish, and Homura stood witness.

Less than two months later, Sayaka spent herself to kill a gathering of wraiths, and the Law of Cycles took her. Even in Madoka's new world, this was where it ended.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼


	3. The Devil and the Angel

.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

 **III. The Devil and the Angel**

When first she woke again and arrived in Mitakihara to meet the other four puella magi, she couldn't shake a niggling doubt that something was out of place. She couldn't say why, except that wearing her hair in braids like this felt wrong. But Mitakihara was overrun with nightmares, and she was thrilled to be out of the hospital and have friends for the first time in her life. So she ignored the feeling that her life could never be this blessed, and got to work alongside Madoka, Kyouko, Mami, and Sayaka.

Kyouko loved to drag her off to get a burger and hit the arcades. Homura destroyed her at any shooting games, but could only fumble and trip herself up on the DDR machines. Loud, energetic, and unrestrained, Kyouko laughed herself out of breath at Homura's stumbling baby deer impression and tried to get her back on the machines for another round, but after the first time Homura just watched with a smile while her friend danced. This life was a blessing to Kyouko; she deserved to be able to play around like a child without fear.

They spent long hours at Mami's apartment. It was the de facto home for their entire group, and they gathered around her table to make their way through an endless supply of desserts and happy idle chatter. More than any other time, when Mami smiled graciously at her and leaned down to put a cup of warm tea in front of Homura, she felt like everything was really going to be alright, for both her and Mami. But why did she doubt that in the first place? Why did she need to be reassured that everything was safe?

And Madoka. If she was friends with the others, between her and Madoka was a friendship set ablaze. Homura's apartment went nearly unused because if they weren't all gathered at Mami's house, then Homura was studying with Madoka, eating dinner with Madoka's family, wandering Mitakihara's parks with Madoka, talking with Madoka. Before she came to Mitakihara, Homura hadn't even thought to ask where she wanted to spend the rest of her life; with her weakened heart, she hadn't even been sure how long that would be. But now as a puella magi she knew the answer as surely as the half-moon hung above the city.

And yet, even though she took to all these girls as easily as water following well-worn riverbeds, she still hung back from Sayaka. She watched. She watched the other girl laughing and playfighting with Kyouko, charging about the grass on the way to school until one managed to tackle the other to the ground. She went with Madoka and Sayaka to the music store and dutifully listened to everything Sayaka shoved at the two of them. She giggled as Sayaka snuck Bebe too many bits of cheese when Mami wasn't looking, which always ended with their little friend overstuffed but content. And who in the world responds to an offer of tea and cake by _saluting_ , of all things?

She watched and nurtured a little flame of joy in her heart. It was about time Sayaka had comrades to stand with, comrades who would never let her fall alone. But, she still hung back.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

Discrepancies and doubts piled up, and her memory began to return. A moment in a group planning session where even the word "nightmare" seemed strange and foreign. A sweet conversation with Madoka ruined by a panic attack brought on by sudden conviction that _this should be impossible_. Seeing Mami cuddling Bebe, and instinctively reaching for a gun.

They were in a witch's labyrinth. How could they let themselves be tricked so easily?

She was almost impressed with herself for approaching the other girls correctly even though she hadn't been able to remember a thing about them at the start. Mami was safe enough; she was always so polite and cordial that it wasn't difficult to remain friendly while hiding any weaknesses or secrets. Kyouko was also safe, but for different reasons. She was the least likely of their group to shatter, and the two of them worked well together. With her broken faith and shoplifted food, Kyouko had always understood Homura more easily than the others. And Madoka…

…well, if she couldn't be with Madoka, then what was the point?

Sayaka, though. Sayaka wouldn't be gracefully cordial like Mami or understanding like Kyouko. Sayaka tore her friend's shields away and pulled out their darkest bits for the sun to see. Sayaka spat on what she couldn't understand. Sayaka broke under the weight of her own despair. Sayaka was just as wounded as any of them, and seeing her happy made Homura smile because heaven knew she deserved it. But, Homura was still right to keep her distance.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

"Then I suppose I shall deign to be your enemy when the time is ready."

Sayaka stood defiant; waves of water surged up from the river just as Sayaka's magic surged about her; Homura could taste its sea salt tang on the air. Sayaka's second self, the armored leviathan Oktavia, hung behind her with valorous blade at the ready. A torrent of power and dedication, a soul that had sunk to the depths and been raised up again. Before the power washing off of the knight errant of heaven, even the sun itself seemed dimmer as though submerged beneath the great waters, and the sakura petals that filled the air seemed to drift on a river current rather than a breeze.

Homura's lips parted and crept into a smile.

"But do you really think you can stand against me, Miki Sayaka?"

She clapped once, and reached out with her Will. Oktavia vanished, the spray dissolving back into the river behind her.

 _You must have mastered that manifestation of the witch through the darkest trials of your own heart, Sayaka, but you won't turn it against me._

She laid her Spirit upon Sayaka's connection to the Law of Cycles and tore it asunder.

 _She is mine, Sayaka. You and all her friends may enjoy her too, but I won't let you take her from me._

She wrapped her Mind around Sayaka's, and plucked up the out-of-place memories of the worlds before this one.

 _And now that you won't even remember what I've done and what direction you should take to challenge me, I have already won._

 _Flail about and struggle against me all you wish. That is the only choice someone with the will and spirit of Miki Sayaka could possibly make. You will never win, for now the Devil is on the throne of the Goddess. I will bear the sin that you could never forgive, Sayaka. I will bear the sin, and make from it the foundation of my paradise._

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

The sun hung in the distance, tingeing the sky with the first shadings of red and orange as it sank into evening. It was possible, if one knew what to search for, to look up and find something hanging in the sky above the city. A tomb, a prison, a monument, the graven image of a goddess bound in silence to watch over Mitakihara.

Homura too kept watch, seated at her table perched on the grassy cliffs above the city. The light sparkled as it caught the ice in her purple drink; the grass behind her rippled in a soft breeze. It was a beautiful world she'd made to enjoy with Madoka. Yet, just a little while ago, she'd felt the lovingly woven lies and false comforts that wrapped about this world suddenly stretch and shudder and tremble as something came loose. Homura had her guesses whose fault this was.

Somewhere behind her, a cheerful voice was humming "Ode to Joy" as it drew closer.

Sayaka came bouncing up the path. From her jean shorts and loose blue tee shirt, she looked like she was out for a pleasant hike instead of marching to face the devil. She stepped on a shuddering Kyubey with absent-minded deliberateness, reached the top of the trail, and waved with an enormous grin. "Hey Homura! You don't make yourself easy to find, do you? The view from here's worth it, though! Oh, and the Incubators left lying around are kind of weird trail markers."

A line of Clara dolls stepped into existence to bar Sayaka's way, pale skin glinting and smiles too wide and sharp. Homura half-turned in her seat and peered at Sayaka, reading the tang of the ocean and the light of divinity in her magic once again. "Miki Sayaka. I see you've been reinstated as a herald of the Law of Cycles."

"Been reinstated? Ha! Come on, that just makes it sound like I had to submit the right form and wait for the celestial bureaucrats. Give me some credit here!" She kept walking forward, right up to the line of Clara dolls, then picked one out. She was a short blonde-haired doll in a sundress with zigzags along the bottom and a hat that wouldn't be out of place at a Sunday stroll through the park, except that it was all in mourning black. "Hey there, think you could grab me a chair if your mistress doesn't mind?"

The Clara doll blinked for a moment, working her way through the question, before turning to Homura. "Do you wish it, Good-for-nothing?"

"It doesn't matter. Do what you will, Blockhead."

Blockhead replied with a military-crisp curtsy, then grabbed Sayaka's hand and tugged her through the line of Clara dolls. She spun around and was suddenly holding a second chair, which she set down, and politely helped Sayaka be seated. Sayaka cheerfully nodded her thanks and winked at Homura, who remained stony-faced. Blockhead dipped another curtsy, this one to the guest, before vanishing once again.

The others followed suit and also vanished, except for one grinning vacantly and wearing a childish hood with an orange knit bobble on top. The last Clara doll set a cup of tea in front of Sayaka and dove in to hug her shoulders from the side. "Welcome back, Goddess's angel!"

A fist hit the table; Homura glared at her last mourner. "Enough, Stupid-looking! Leave us!"

Stupid-looking threw her arms in front of her face and vanished with a tiny shriek; Sayaka shook her head. "Shouldn't be so mean to them, Homura. They're cute." She paused and sipped her drink. "Good tea, too."

Homura stared at Sayaka for a few seconds, running her finger along the rim of her own glass. "I suppose I should congratulate you, Miki Sayaka. In only a month and a half, you've done what should have been impossible. I don't recall allowing you permission to regain your memories and your connection to the Law of Cycles in my world. I don't suppose you'd care to tell me how you did it?"

"So you can seal the leak and wipe my mind again? Ha! It was hard enough figuring out how to dodge you and your little minions long enough to pull it off once." Sayaka paused. "What's with your drink, anyway? That goblet's gotta be as big as your head, and it's half ice balls. Is it like… wine? Grape juice? Water dyed purple?"

"Incubator tears."

Sayaka's eyes popped wide open. "Really?"

"No."

"Damn. I'd try that." Sayaka scooted her chair around the table to be a little closer to Homura, then leaned up close to her face with a smirk. "So you're not doing your devil space invader thing like you were last time. Are you afraid I might not get freaked out and run away this time?"

Homura responded with a supremely unimpressed frown and, one fingertip on Sayaka's forehead, slowly pushed her back into her seat. "If you're _quite_ done taunting the mistress of this realm, Miki Sayaka…."

Sayaka laughed, and tilted her chair back to balance on its legs. "Heh, sorry. I think if I don't joke around a little, I'm going to start shouting again like last time. I was kind of surprised, though. When you goddessknapped Madoka and sprouted wings, I was afraid you'd gone all crazy omnicidal thanks to how Kyubey was messing with your gem or something. But we've been here a month and a half, and practically all we've done is hunt wraiths where they pop up and run around having normal lives. Oh, and you've been smirking at me behind Madoka's back like a bastard every chance you got, that too. I was going crazy trying to figure out what you were up to, but now I've got my memories back it's pretty obvious." Sayaka let her chair hit the ground again and leaned forward. "It's just like back in your labyrinth's false Mitakihara, other than you won't let Madoka do jack and you're being insufferable. This really is all you want, isn't it? A world where Madoka and all your friends are safe."

"A paradise built on my sins and selfish desires, a paradise you could never accept. And now here we are; you, the rogue angel loose in the devil's realm." Homura, hands folded in front of her mouth, watched her opponent. She wished the other girl would scowl and shout and rant; she knew how to force that Sayaka away. But this girl who smiled and joked even while they were at odds and looked at her with compassion as if she could understand…. This girl was treating her almost like they were friends as they had been years ago, but the Sayaka she knew back then could never have been so calm in the face of an enemy. The girl now sitting with her at the table and sipping tea was the Sayaka who had come as a herald of the Law of Cycles to rescue her from the Incubator's ploy. Inside the labyrinth of the nutcracker witch, Sayaka had calmly kept up a façade so complete that Homura hadn't even realized she wasn't what she seemed until the herald chose to tip her hand. "What will you do now, Miki Sayaka?"

"You know, you can drop the cold shoulder routine. Just call me Sayaka! I'd certainly be happier if you did. Let me tell you something you should've figured out already, then. When Madoka takes up a puella magi, they're almost in the same place she is outside time. I couldn't see as much as she could, of course, but I remember my own lives well enough, Homs."

Homura's composure cracked and her eyes shot open. "You mean—you really remember…"

"Milkshakes, sleepovers, braids. And a cold ice queen who does anything she can to keep everyone out. I remember all my old lives. Man, I really got killed off a lot of stupid ways, didn't I?"

Homura's breath became shallow, hands trembling as she clutched at the table to steady herself, her goblet rattling from the tremors. Sharp purple light lanced from the gem dangling from her ear, a hiss of panic ran through the world around them.

All levity, natural or deliberate, fell from Sayaka as she realized Homura was going to pieces right in front of her. "Homura! Calm down! What are you doing?"

" _You're going to fight me again!_ Even though you remember it all, you're set on being my enemy!" Accusing, bitter, knife-sharp.

"Why are you so sure about that?" Sayaka's hands were up, placating, almost reaching out to Homura, but pulled back at her flinch.

"You always do, you're always my enemy, if you remember everything then you know how many times we've done this!"

"Homura, please, just calm down! I'm not going to hurt you! "

"You'll _try!_ " But Homura stood, knocking her chair over from the speed, and walked a few long strides away from the table. Sayaka watched her as she took to pacing back and forth, trying to breathe slower and get herself under control. She stopped to send Kyubey flying with a vicious punt, and turned back to Sayaka. "I know you always hate me, but coming here to be my enemy even though now you remember how many times you've destroyed yourself to hurt me is a new low for you."

"You're not even going to try talking me down?" Sayaka watched her, wary and doing a bad job of hiding it. "You could appeal to my friendship with Madoka. You could remind me how much danger she's in and how many times you failed because protecting her was so hard. Huh. I really thought you'd try to recruit me. I think you even stand a decent chance! I told you back in your labyrinth I could sympathize with a witch who made a paradise for her friends. I said that knowing full well what you'd been through. Well, my part in it anyway, but that's more than enough to piece the outline together."

Homura jerked her head side to side, still breathing hard. "It wouldn't work. You're determined to oppose me. Even if you remember the wretchedness of being a witch, even if you know how much suffering Madoka is taking on by bearing that grief for every puella magi, you'll still lash that weight onto her shoulders!"

"I'm not making Madoka do anything! She made that decision herself because she couldn't stand us suffering!" Sayaka herself was getting heated at that accusation, and took her own advice to try to calm down. "Look. I don't hate you, Homura, I wouldn't kill you even if I could, and I don't want to fight you. But I'm the kind of idiot who only learns from screwing up, and those mistakes killed me everytime until Madoka gave me a second chance. I'd be a hypocrite if I tried to keep that to myself. Madoka's not just here for you, me, Mami, and Kyouko. She wanted to help all puella magi."

Homura scowled at the other girl. "Why are you even trying to justify yourself to me? We both know where this ends."

"Because… because I'm sorry. Because I've got this notion like I might talk you into letting her go, even though I know you won't. Because I feel like you might forgive me if you understand why I'm doing this." Sayaka heaved a sigh and ran a hand through her hair. "Because I am going to fight you. Standing alongside Madoka is all I can do to repay her."

"Not true. You could help her set her burden down."

"That's not our call, transfer student. It's hers."

Homura twirled about on the grass, laughing, and thrust her arms outward to encompass the sky, the city, and the whole world around them. "And so here we are, stuck again, a devil and an angel eternally butting heads. A strange place for a princess and a knight to end up, wouldn't you say, Sayaka?"

"I'm sorry." Sayaka nudged her chair out and stood slowly, but lingered near the table.

"Understand that I'll protect Madoka with my dying breath." Homura gave Sayaka a level stare. "That includes protecting her from you, should you encourage her to put herself in danger again."

Sayaka tossed her head in frustration. She didn't say it, but Homura could tell what she was thinking. _Having people you care about doesn't just mean protecting them, Homura. You have to let them into your heart even if they'll hurt you._ It wasn't telepathy; she just knew.

Just like she knew what her own irritated scowl told Sayaka. _You think I don't remember that, Miki? I know it better than anyone._

Sayaka replied with smile that was at once determined and gentle. _But you don't believe it anymore. I have hope that I'll convince you again, though._

She began to walk away down the trail, but then paused and tilted her head back to Homura. "Hey. I'm meeting up with Kyouko so we can go out for dinner. There's this ramen place in Kasamino she's been craving. You want to come too?"

Homura blinked, caught off guard. "You still think we can play at being friends, even knowing we'll be fighting as enemies soon enough?"

"Of course! It's only natural. After all, isn't being a little selfish the whole point of this world you made? Even if you have to fight them, why not be a little greedy and have some fun with your friends anyway?"

Homura stared at Sayaka for a long moment, stony face hiding her thoughts. Finally she turned her back and stared off over the city. "You should be going."

"Well. Open invitation if you feel like it later, Homs. And if you ever you want to unload, well, I'm the only other person here who remembers everything." She got no other reply, so Sayaka turned and continued down the path again.

A memory came to mind as Homura made herself stand still until she could no longer hear Sayaka's retreat. Almost as if it was before her eyes again, she saw a princess in a deep purple dress and a knight in a sea-blue cape, hands clasped as they danced together.

／人◕ ‿‿ ◕人＼

 _fin._

* * *

A/N: If that seems like a strange place to end it... yes, yes it is. I did this fic as a character study to help me get a grasp on Sayaka and Homura's relationship for a much longer post-Rebellion fic I'm working on. So if you're screaming "BUT WHERE DOES THE PLOT GO?" at your monitor right now, just hang tight. Another story is coming.


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